Why Football is world’s most popular sport?

November 24, 2018

Football is the passion and legacy of the European countries that dates back to 1863, and the popularity of the game continuously unabated. This is the sport that makes millions of people to forget their surrounding and immense in the sport.

The unmatched global appeal of English Premier League is well recognized and it draws hundreds and thousands of visitors from all over the world to UK.

So, why is football popular? After all, it is just a case of twenty players trying to find a way to get the ball into the opposition net and two others trying to stop a goal. Perhaps, this is oversimplified version and there are plenty of reasons to explain the popularity of the game. Thanks to the international broadcasts and online streaming, the game has reached to the far-flung corners of the world.

Simplicity – Football is simple game when you try to understand when watching. Two teams on the field with 11 men/women on each team. The objective is to score goals. The more goals a team achieves will be winner. Then comes the rules of the game offside, corners, yellow-card and other technical aspects and it can be learnt as you dive deep into the sport. As a newbie, you should be rather concerned about the goals.

Duration of the game – The football game lasts 90 minutes, for instance when you compare it with Cricket it lasts a day. In an age of instant gratification and decreasing attention span, the time duration offers a refreshing change. You can be glued as audience to the entire time of the game.

Accessibility – The sport is undoubtedly enjoys the wide television coverage. The world-cup broadcast is telecasted over 200 countries and over billion people watched the last world-cup final.
Availability – Football is played all year round either at association level or at international level. There are local as well as European leagues and Championships to watch. In addition, mother of all – the World Cup every four years. In addition, you have Euros, Copa America among other prestigious competitions in their respective geography. Each league has huge frenzy fan following at international level.

Game for all –Imagine what it would cost kicking a ball, absolutely zero cost. Unlike other sports, it does not require expensive accessories. The limited accessories are still manageable to carry around anywhere. The game is for all and does not discriminate based on gender. Women’s football is equally popular as mainstream men’s football tournament. More so, size, height, race are immaterial as long as you possess talent, passion and skills to play.
Sporting icons- There are long and worthy list of excellent players who have influenced our lives and eventually make to watch them repeatedly.

Conclusion
Football is wonderful, engaging and nerve wracking sport to play and watch. There is a reason why football is popular because it is adaptive, inclusive and thrilling. It makes us emotionally glued over the course of the game. Finally, the diversity and nature of the game makes it appealing to all cultures and people around the world.